The Only Side That Matters - Friday Praise & Pray (for others) December 8, 2023

The war between Israel and the Palestinian government, Hamas, has revealed deep divisions in communities across the world.

As Christians, how are we supposed to feel about it all? Even a cursory review of the Bible reveals the foundational role of Israelites in our faith. Our Savior, Jesus, was an Israelite, after all. Scriptures have also taught us to be careful how we speak of and treat the Israelites. Yet, it is difficult to see ordinary Palestinians suffer the brutal consequences of their government's decision to attack on October 7, 2023. It is hard to hear people speak of them with derogatory language and dehumanizing concepts, ignoring that God chose to make them in His image.

While people are busy choosing sides, I want to encourage you to pick the only side that matters - God's.

Remember that Jesus submitted Himself to God's plan for His life when the end came. Following in His footsteps and submitting to God's will is a mark of genuine Christianity. Personally, I have learned that my desires must always give way to God's will. Any time I have been stubborn about this (and it's been many times, sadly), I have regretted the choice and the resulting consequences.

Therefore, please pray for God's will to be done in this conflict. Be humble enough to acknowledge that you won't know what that is unless He tells you. Each time we proclaim the Lord's Prayer, we state "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10, KJV). If you truly believe this, then ask Him to show you how to pray about the war in a way that glorifies Him. In so doing, He will give you the prayer points He wants you to lift up regarding this situation. He will also provide you with the scriptural understanding that you need. Only then will you be able to pray in alignment with His will and His word. And that will increase the effectiveness of your prayers.

Simply pray "Lord, Thy will be done. Please show me how to pray about this situation." Then wait and watch for God to teach you so that you are prayerfully working with Him and not against His will. He may instruct one person to pray for children in Gaza while telling someone else to pray for the hostages. To another, He may say, "pray for the leaders involved" while telling someone to pray for peace. The key is to allow God's Holy Spirit to direct you.

Do not take your cues from the talking heads on either side of this issue. They don't care about your immortal soul. Only God does. And if truly He is your God, then allow Him to lead and not your emotions.

God bless you and see you at noon EST for fellowship.

The Pig, The Mud & Its Nature - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) December 5, 2023

When you think of a pig, what comes to mind? I think of a pinkish creature with a little tail that curls up. Then, I immediately imagine delicious bacon with scrambled eggs and some warm toast.

Someone else might picture pigs playing in the mud. Let's imagine this picture together and consider the following scenario: there's a farm with a caretaker who picks up an excited, little pig. Known as Mr. Piggy, he got so dirty from playing in the mud that it caked in his rolls and hurt. The caretaker picks him up and reminds him that he's been told to stay clean. He nonetheless gets a nice bath and all the dirt is washed away.

Alas, it is in Mr. Piggy's nature to get dirty again. Once it rains and puddles form on the ground, he heads to the muddiest one. He rolls around and splashes mud into the air as he oinks for joy.

But then, there's Ms. Piglet. She used to love the mud but one day, after a scrub down, she saw her reflection and liked how clean she looked. Now, she completely avoids mud. She is so clean that she lives in the caretaker's home. There, she has a bowl for her food and never fights with other pigs for a meal. She also gets regular belly rubs. On rainy mornings, Ms. Piglet enjoys lying by the open door to watch the rain. She doesn't understand why Mr. Piggy always jumps into the mud.

While far from a perfect analogy, this piggly tale illustrates aspects of the Christian life. The Caretaker is Jesus, who keeps coming in to wash off our sins and make us clean whenever we genuinely repent. Yet, some see the next puddle of mud, which represents sin, and dive in without hesitation. That puddle just seems to beckon them. It's all because we humans are prone to sin.

Then there are some like Ms. Piglet who enjoy remaining mud-free. They glow instead of having their shine tarnished by sin and they are well-cared for by the Caretaker in his home instead of in a pig pen. Plus, because they live in the house, they will never end up as bacon on someone's plate someday.

Mr. Piggy doesn't realize that there are consequences to repeatedly submitting to his nature. Because he keeps rejecting that cleansing, someday, the Caretaker will stop washing him and allow him to be who he wants to be - a pig covered in muddy sin. Psalm 81:12 states, "So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices."

God wants each of us to stay away from sin's muddy puddles and enjoy being cleansed by Jesus. This brings peace, assurance, and more. The cleansing also means we gain eternal life in heaven. This is God's offer to us and it is free of charge. We just have to choose to be clean and the caretaker, Jesus, will consistently scrub us down when we sin and repent.

May we all accept and appreciate the Caretaker's loving cleansing and turn away from the muddy puddles of sin that want to keep us from living comfortably, IJMN, Amen

God bless us all.

Are you a good or bad example? - Friday Praise & Pray (for others) December 1, 2023

What name comes to mind when you think of a Biblical person whose behavior you don't want to replicate? Is it the Pharaoh who refused to free the Israelites? Is it Haman, who sought to murder every Jew in the Persian Kingdom? How about the Sons of Sceva? They went around declaring the name of Jesus but didn't walk in the power of that responsibility. The result was a great embarrassment for them.

Think of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. They sold some land and pretended to give the entire proceeds to the church for the welfare of their fellow believers. At that time in church history, it was common practice for those who had more to sell their belongings and raise cash used to provide for others. In reality, however, the husband and wife had held some money back for themselves. That in itself was not a problem. The issue was that they acted pious in public, seeking to deceive Apostle Peter and their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

The Holy Spirit revealed their duplicity to Peter and Ananias died instantly for his attempt to deceive. When asked if the money presented was the exact amount received for the land sale, his wife lied, saying it was. She also dropped dead.

Through the experience of Ananias and Sapphira, the Lord taught the early Christians that nothing is hidden from the Holy Spirit. He also used the couple as an example of why all should obey His instruction to never deceive or lie (Leviticus 19:11). These lessons spread past the early believers according to Acts 5:11 - Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events. The fear in question here was the fear of the Lord and it spurred people to keep His commandments much more faithfully.

The list of individuals and groups we shouldn't imitate in the Bible is very long. We must remember that just as God used them to teach us what not to do, He can equally use any of us for the same purpose if we aren't careful. Studying and obeying the Word will help us avoid this predicament because it teaches us what to do and what not to do.

Even in this day and age, there are people whose experiences serve as cautionary tales of what not to do. God doesn't do this to be wicked or unkind. Remember, He has given everyone a choice to be either godly or ungodly in this story we call life.

What will you choose? To be an example of what to do or what not to do? My prayer is that nobody reading this message will make the sort of choices that open the door to becoming the sort of person whose behavior should not be emulated.

And if for any reason, you feel you could have become an example of what not to do, know that God is merciful. His mercies endure forever (Psalm 136:1, KJV). There is grace from the Lord to turn your life around so that you become an example of what it means to please Him. Simply repent for your sins and commit to obey the Lord. He will bless you, help you, and change your entire story. He will do these and more so that you won't be the poster child of what not to do. Instead, your life will be an example that is emulated to the glory of God.